Why UTIS are putting Aussies at risk

WHILE common infections such as urinary tract infections have often been treated easily in the past, a new study by Australia’s national science agency, CSIRO, had found the spread of drug-resistant bacteria is increasing the risk of death.

One in two women and one in 20 men will experience common infections.

While infections such as UTIS have been easily treated with medication or homemade remedies such as cranberry juice in the past, more intensive measures must be taken to counteract the bacteria, which is currently surging through the community.

Antimicrobial resistance (AMR) occurs when bacteria and other microbes become resistant to the drugs designed to kill them, generally through misuse or overuse of the drugs.

The bacteria can be passed between humans through hospital transmission and community transmission.

The study, a collaboration between CSIRO, QUT and the University of Queensland, analysed data from 21,268 patients across 134 Queensland hospitals who acquired their infections in the community.

It found patients were 2.43 times more likely to die from community acquired drug-resistant UTIS caused by Pseudomonas aeruginosa and 3.28 times more likely to die from community acquired drug-resistant blood stream infections caused by Enterobacteriaceae than those with drug-sensitive infections.

CSIRO research scientist, Dr Teresa Wozniak, said the high prevalence of UTIS make them a major contributor to antibiotic use in Australia.

“Our study found patients who contracted drug-resistant UTIS in the community were more than twice as likely to die from the infection in hospital than those without resistant bacteria,” Dr Wozniak said.

“Without effective antibiotics, many standard medical procedures and life-saving surgeries will becoming increasingly life-threatening.

“Tracking the burden of drug-resistant infections in the community is critical to understanding how far antimicrobial resistance is spreading and how best to mitigate it.”

The study’s findings will provide further guidance for managing AMR in the community, such as developing AMR stewardship programs that draw on data from the population being treated.

CSIRO’S Australian e-health Research Centre CEO Dr David Hansen said tracking community resistance was difficult as it involved multiple strains of bacteria.

“Until now we haven’t been using the best data to support decision making in our fight against AMR. Data on community acquired resistance is a significant missing piece of the puzzle,” he said.

“Digital health has an important role in using big data sets to describe patterns of disease and drive important population health outcomes.”

CSIRO is conducting further research to understand the clinical implications of AMR, its health and economic burden, and improving surveillance of AMR in blind spots like rural and remote communities.

The paper, ‘The increased length of hospital stay and mortality associated with community-associated infections in Australia’, was published in Open Forum Infectious Diseases in March 2022.

AMR can be reduced through good hand hygiene, keeping your environment clean, good food preparation hygiene, and not misusing antibiotics.